Spellbound

[RobberBaroness]

Perfectly enchanting! An irresistibly sexual, utterly rapturous blend of three roses, radiant amber, and sensual red musk.

 

This smelled deliciously of roses in the bottle, but oh! How I was deceived! It's nothing but a moldy wet musk when applied to my skin.

[ianastar]

I think Im realizing that Im not a fan of red musks. This is the second red musk fragrance Ive tried today and I haven't been a fan of either. I don't get the rose at all in this.

 

Wet it is strong red musk.

 

The dry down is the same. This really hasn't changed at all for me.

 

The throw of this is killer! Its super strong and shows no sign of wearing down. A little goes a long way I guess.

 

Overall, I had high hopes for this one but Im just not a fan.

[artoria]

Oh my god, this is incredible.

In the imp: Roses and what may be the musk or amber. The roses are especially strong in this stage, but are mellowed out by the other notes.

Wet, on the skin: Very rich roses, a bit of spice, a bit of sweetness. It has an almost patchouli kind of quality here for a little bit, but it's faint.

After immediate drydown: My coworker said I smelled of roses and citrus, like lemon, and sweet. At this point, on me, it wasn't dissimilar from Lush's Rose Jam. While not exactly alike, that was my immediate thought. There's just something sharp and clean here with the rose, perhaps even the rose itself.

Dry, over time: As this dries, the roses linger, but don't get powedery at all on me! They blend exceptionally well with the amber and red musk, and it all comes together to create something sweet (but not cloying), warm, deep, and creamy. It's almost a strong vanilla, but with that touch of spice that elevates it, and it keeps the roses from smelling too elderly. The "lemon" scent disappeared. It's absolutely delicious, very inviting, and rather sensual. To me, it smells "expensive." The smell is still strong after 6 hours.

I love this one and my skin chemistry loves it, too. It completely warrants a full bottle.

Edited December 10, 2017 by artoria

[achildoftime]

Red musk and red roses. It's mostly a floral scent as it's what's right up front. The red musk really just gives the roses some backbone to rest on. I don't think this one works for me as the roses smell as if they are starting to age and decay. I'm chalking it up to weird skin chemistry and sending it to swaps.

[Meirion]

Frimp in a recent lab order. This smells exactly like a rose incense I burned all the time in freshman year of college, and I mean exactly. As if I'm standing right next to the incense burner. It's not just rose plus incense, it's a smoky heady rose incense. Strong, strong throw. It's very pretty, but unfortunately not something I want to wear on my skin.

[Teaker]

This smells exactly like walking into a new age shop- pure incense. It's nice and I like the mental imagery it conjures, but I wouldn't wear this as I don't like to smell like incense.

[harmonyfb]

The description sounded lovely, and it smelled ok in the imp, so I slathered.

 

This was an error in judgment. A terrible error in judgment.

 

From the initial blast of musk came this sour smell that got stronger and stronger and STRONGER. It eventually identified itself as the roses. Sour, musky, horrible roses that choked me until I had to run and scrub it from my skin. It's still there.

 

So...huge throw, long-lasting, and utterly horrible on my skin.

[alyelle]

This one has been on my wishlist since at least 2014 - so glad to finally tick it off!

 

In the imp: deep rose (the deliciously soft, wet red petals kind) and a heart of amber

 

Wet: blushing pink roses - thankfully not yet powdery - lightly tinged with amber

 

Dry: heavy on the rose, which is no surprise as I amp it like crazy. I can discern two of the three - there's the powdery one, which I think of as pot pourri pink, which was the disaster note in so many Bewitching Brews releases. There's also a dewy, red rose, which was the one I fell in love with in the 2014 and 2015 Lupercalia releases. I'm not sure what the third one is, but thankfully those latter two stop the first from becoming unbearable; "pot pourri pink" is a hot mess of grandma talcum powder on me.

 

Life is pretty good, 6-8 hours in long sleeves, with a strong throw - I definitely wouldn't forget I was wearing this. It reminds me overall of Between Your Heart and Mine (original release), and would make a nice sub for anyone who missed that.

 

Stars: ★★★★

[torischroeder9]

In the imp: Lots of red musk. 

 

On my skin:

 

First, I'm not sure how aged this imp is, but the very dark red oil actually stains my skin, even more than my aged Snake Oil and Vixen do. Wet, there is a touch of something sweet making its way through the red musk, but it's not immediately identifiable. As it dries down, the rose note becomes prominent, tinged by the deep red musk. The amber, I suspect, is helping to bridge these two notes as well as to help showcase the roses. Given time to settle and warm and develop, it's definitely still very much a rose blend on me, but the amber and red musk are still quite assertive in the background, helping to add depth and grounding to Spellbound's scent. 

 

I've worn it many times before (at least a couple of other imps and the majority of a post-Lab purchase bottle), and I think Spellbound is my favorite BPAL rose blend -- certainly of the ones I've tried, which are many. For skin chemistry like mine -- rose almost always shows up true and beautiful, but it almost always wants to take over -- it helps to be paired with other strong notes to give the rose something to stand up against. 

 

Good throw, longer than average wear length on me. 

[spookyumbrella]

Does what it says on the tin - musky, ambery roses. Its very deep and lush.

[naeelah]

I've been on the hunt for a rose-dominant scent that is powerful and commanding -- something like roses and red musk, a strong, red, rose-dominant scent that is not softened by jasmine or other flowers, that is not competing with strong notes such as coffee, or cooled by leather, or sweetened by fruit, or tempered by incense. You get the idea. Just, rose, only more powerful. A rose that is flush, as if roses had blood. A rose in heat.

 

Spellbound is pretty much right on the mark. It is absolutely a strong, rich, red rose, grounded by red musk and rounded out by amber. The amber lends an incensey and powdery quality. It's quite strong at first, but once dry, it does blend well into the rose and musk. It helps to give it depth.

 

It is not as dry and incensey as Rose Cross and other rose resin blends. Those are far more resin-dominant, and the overall effect on my skin is quite soft and powdery, ultimately. Here, there is a powdery element, but it's not a deal breaker. In the end, this is very much a red rose and red musk scent, and the longer I wear it, the better it becomes.

 

I'll add, the red musk here is similar to the one in Krampus or Smut. It has a sharp, astringent quality that is not fruity. Some red musks just smell like cherries. That is nice in the right blend, but this one, mercifully, is more resinous. Definitely some dragon's blood here, but the sweetness is kept in check.

 

If you want to smell like red roses, full stop, try the Peacock Queen (for a rich, pure rose), Rose Red (fresh, dewy rose), or the GC scent The Rose (roses + green leaves, like Rose Red,  but without the coolness). If you want red roses and more, check out the Dawn series, which is fantastic. If you want to smell like a pure rose perfume, Spellbound has you covered. (And if you want something like Spellbound but juicier, you'll want to try Blood Rose.)

Edited February 2, 2020 by naeelah

[artisjok]

If O Love and Time and Sin is the aftermath of sex (sweaty, gritty, dark, and delicious), Spellbound is the phase before the act. It’s got the heavy red musk attraction, yet there’s a lighter tone with the ambers compared to the opoponax. The roses are more present and in form, rather than crushed and strewn about the bed sheets.
I adore both scents. They’re both heavy and sensual. I really have to feel like I’m in my body and power to fully appreciate wearing them. 
Funnily, I accidentally slathered OL&T&S last night before bed, when I thought I was putting another scent on. Then, this morning I grabbed a random GC imp & Spellbound was the first. Talk about serendipity...

Edited March 9, 2020 by artisjok

[RoseThornAndOak]

Naeelah pretty much summed up Spellbound perfectly. Very lovely red musk/rose/dragons blood type blend, not too crazy powdery but well blended. If the wine note in Blood Rose is wonky on you, Spellbound is a very wearable Blood Rose on me, absolutely perfect. It retains the incensey rose without the sour fruit! It is not listed as a note, but it reads very dragons blood, yet works better than most of the Lab's dragons blood blends on me. 

 

Also perfectly timed to be a reasonable replacement for Madame Moriarty as well. At some point over the past decade of aging the black currant note decided to go cat pee and ruin Mdm Moriarty during most phases and it was very sad! In walks Spellbound the enchantress, reassuring me "There there now, don't fret, I'm here now." 🤗 However this reads much closer to Blood Rose. This is up there with Frostbitten Lust and Flesh of My Flesh as a favorite red musk blend from the lab.

 

Instantly going on the bottle list. 

 

fans of: Blood Rose, Tombeur, Madame Moriarty, Flesh of My Flesh, Lust, and La Lethe or Deep Midnight Perfumes Sangreal

[Hesper]

Spellbound on me comes off as a sweet cherry cola. Given some time, the amber emerges to mellow down that sweetness, but I wanted roses...!

[fairybites]

This is very pretty. Lots of dark red roses and red musk. The amber overtakes the roses a little bit once dry. It's a sweet rose blend, definitely don't miss this if you are a big fan of roses! It doesn't get too strongly floral even though it's mostly rose.

 

Pretty good throw as well, which I appreciate. Love this, might upgrade!

[skyturtles]

Out of the imp (of unknown age) I can pick up on the red musk, which is typically a friend of mine. Just that hint of sweetness, mmm.

Wet on my skin I immediately get the roses mixed with the amber. Unfortunately it seems to turn sour. I'm reminded of old moldy paper.

I think I'm learning that roses are hit or miss on me. When combined with the amber, which I'm usually not a huge fan, something goes awry.

Oh well, another one to frimp away!